Lazy Sundaze – Four Antidotes to Procrastination

Procrastination Antidote 3: Create the Space

A big part of the problem with constant procrastination is that we are in an environment that is conducive to distraction, to doing small tasks (like checking messages, answering emails, seeing how many likes you got on Facebook, etc.).

You might set yourself to doing the work, but then decide to just check one thing real quick. And that leads to checking another. And before you know it, a whole day has gone by. It’s hard to focus when you’re in an environment like this.

So the smallest first step you need to do is create the space. Turn off Wi-Fi, set up an Internet blocker, unplug your router, or get somewhere where there is no Internet. With an environment like this, you will be able to focus much better.

This is why my best writing is often done on planes or trains. Or when I use a distraction-free writing tool, or an Internet blocker. There isn’t anything else to do but the work I’ve committed to doing.

For other people, that might mean finding a space where you’ll do nothing but the work you’re going to do – a practice space for martial arts or music, for example, or a reading space with no electronic devices, or a painting studio in your garage.

Create the space, clear everything away, then get to it.

Procrastination Antidote 4: Find the Joy in It

When we think of the work as something huge and difficult, stressful and overwhelming, or full of fear, it’s hard not to procrastinate.

So a switch in mindset would be hugely beneficial. If you love doing it, you won’t slip into procrastination!

The trick is to find the joy in the activity. Don’t just do it like it’s a chore to be gotten over with, or some ordeal you need to make it through. Instead, see it as a treasured activity that you get to do. Something that is a privilege to do, because not everyone gets to do this kind of work.

What an amazing thing it is to be alive, doing this activity right now, in the miracle of existence and of this moment! What a breathtaking thing, if only we don’t take it for granted, and fully appreciate the fleeting joyful beauty of this moment.

So in each moment, appreciate the profound power of what you’re doing, be fully immersed in it, fully mindful of the sensations of the experience and see if there isn’t the thrill of joy to be found in every motion, every breath.

Your brain will start to program itself to dive into this joyful activity, and you will be awake to the world.